As the coronavirus continues to impact all aspects of our society, public records research is no exception. There are government offices closed across the country, while offices that continue to operate are in some cases seeking exemptions from transparency laws due to decreased staffing and office closures. In times of increased uncertainty, there is an even greater need for informed decision-making, guided by up-to-date insight from public records. We’ve outlined several strategies and tips to help researchers navigate these, or any other, uncertain times:
Learn the lay of the land: As more and more governments digitize their services, there’s a tendency to assume public records are just a few clicks away online, but that is not always the case. There are some recorder’s offices or county courts that do not maintain online databases due to privacy concerns and still others that require setting up a subscription account. The BRB Sourcebook’s Public Record Research System is an invaluable resource for researchers navigating the public records landscape. It details government office record-keeping procedure on a county-by-county basis across the U.S., including hours of operation, online resources and contact info.
Understand the limitations of available online searches; strategize accordingly: Even for those offices that do maintain searchable online indexes, not every record is available in their online databases. For instance, most online recorder indexes list party names, document number and document type, while court indexes will also frequently list docket information for the particular case, but not include the actual case filings. Researcher can utilize the time while government offices and courts are closed to understand the limitations in the databases being searched and to compile plans to retrieve the documents from in-field, as necessary, when the shelter-in-place or office closures are no longer an issue.
Be patient; extensions are likely: Even in the best of times, public records requests can be given a low priority in the government bureaucracy. However with the coronavirus pandemic growing by the day and government offices either closed or operating at minimal capacity, researchers should expect delays and prepare to exercise patience. There are already numerous examples of governments using the coronavirus pandemic to avoid answering FOIA requests. If a request is targeted at a particular office, it’s a good idea to reach out directly to learn what restrictions/delays may be in place.
Federal Responses: This past week, on March 27, the Congressional Research Service issued a CRS Report titled Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), which acknowledged that responses to FOIA requests were changing due to the COVID-19 Act, but suggested there may be an opportunity to have certain requests expedited if the requester could demonstrate a “compelling need.” The CRS Report details statements by each federal agency on FOIA processing changes due to COVID-19, as well as regulations and allowances for expeditated requests.
State Responses: The National Governor’s Association has created a resource page on the coronavirus for states, which includes a State Action Tracking Chart that can be downloaded in either spreadsheet or PDF format and includes restrictions, closures and emergency declarations. The company Multi State Associates, a legislative tracking service, has established a similar continuously updated state-by-state list of responses to the coronavirus including emergency or executive orders in place and legislative closures, which is a helpful starting point to determine what state-level agencies may still be in operation.
Court Closures: The website Law360 has created a running list of federal and state court closures.